It's a beautiful Friday morning, how about some links?
Michigan Wolverines take leadership training on the road
"I feel like I haven't grown," Robinson said. "For me to be the quarterback at the University of Michigan, I feel like I have to grow up a lot and be a lot more accountable." Robinson's honest self-evaluation was just the kind of answer Michigan coach Brady Hoke wanted to hear.
This is one of those "must read" off season profiles. Michigan football's senior class recently traveled to southern California for leadership training (hello NCAA loopholes) that included among other things a camp for kids, a trip to see the Rose Bowl, and a Navy SEAL workout. Along the way, Mark Schlabach sees quite a bit of growth and introspection from the new class of Wolverine leaders. Let's hope that the weekend will serve as a galvanizing moment for the team this year (and not just in that way that TV broadcasts say it is a galvanizing moment by showing clips between kickoff and first down to fill time).
Michigan Defensive Tackle Will Campbell Tried to Slide Across Car Hood While Intoxicated
According to Ann Arbor police, Campbell was arrested after attempting to slide across the hood of a vehicle at 2 a.m. on April 7 in the 600 block of Church Street. An officer in the area could hear the sheet metal on the hood of the car buckle under Campbell’s weight — he’s listed at 322 pounds — and arrested the senior, police stated. Campbell was intoxicated, according to police.
One thing the Navy SEALs didn't teach the Wolverines, apparently, is proper drunken etiquette -- or at least proper hood slide form. Will Campbell, in a moment of youthful exuberance public drunkeness, tried to execute a hood slide without taking into account that he weighs nearly as much as that big hunk of metal that the hood covers. This ended predictably. The cops -- all over the 600 block of Church St at 2am -- stepped in and Campbell got arrested.
Is this a big deal? I'd like to say "yes, a little bit", but I can't even muster that. It was stupid and he was a drunk college kid doing drunk college kid things. He will get some community service, spend a while in Hoke's doghouse, and hopefully think twice next time. I am not disappointed in him (sorry, ESPN), and if you are I challenge you to come up with your stupidest drunk decision and compare it to his. Let 'em be kids.
The Big Ten's 1,000-yard rushers in 2012 - Michigan surprisingly puts just one on the list: Denard. While leaving Fitz off seems a bit nuts, I think what is crazier is putting Nathan Scheelhaase second on the list of possible 3000 yard passers (Denard is 6th, for the record, behind Braxton Miller, Andrew Maxwell, and Danny O'Brien).
Miscellaneous Minutiae, 5/30/2012
I would probably expect a similar result on September 1st (underperformance relative to season-long ppg/yardage trends). That sounds like I'm making some sort of value judgment, but really I'm just confirming that, you know, offenses usually perform worse than they typically do when faced with the best defense on their schedule (news at 11). That's not to say that I think Saban and Smart will be in Borges's head like Professor X, it just seems that Michigan's best chance at winning this one will mirror the 2012 Sugar Bowl "game plan":a little luck, a little non-ironic grit, some bending but not breaking, and did a mention bags of pure luck emblazoned with Jareth Glanda's face instead of the ubiquitous dollar sign? I just don't see Michigan having the ability to put together a lot of long drives, but I would love for Al and the guys to prove me wrong.
Holdin' the Rope refuses to take the bait and talk about conference realignment/playoff fever. I don't have that much self control.
Is selling the national championship to the highest bidder best for college football?
This is truly the next financial progression for college football and could net an unprecedented windfall for the conferences in the national championship and college football as a whole. But there's a part of me that hates seeing college football being sold to the highest bidder. I feel like having the national championship in Dallas simply because Jerry Jones was the highest bidder would take away some of the history of the game.
This is an "It's tradition, won't somebody think of the children" argument that I can actually get behind. As long as we phase out the crooked bowl execs and get the sport to take control, why not host the game in places with college football history? I'd rather see the game played in the old Cotton Bowl than Jerry World. Give the game to Pasadena every year for all I care (in the distance I can hear Jim Delany's cry "but that devalues the Rose Bowl").
The 6-1-1 On Why The Big Ten Shouldn't Expand - Yes, yes, a thousand times yes. I'm already not happy with some teams rotating off the schedule for four years at a time. Let's not dilute the Big Ten even more*.
*(Honestly, this is the exact thing that pisses me off about people bringing up teams like Rutgers as possible additions. I would go on a murderous rampage that would go down in the annals of history if Rutgers took the place of Wisconsin or Penn State on Michigan's schedule even once because someone in a high rise office building in Chicago thought that "opening up the New York market" might "increase the footprint of the conference" and "add another foot of gold coins to Jim's giant swimming pool filled with treasure." Blood will run as red as the team colors of the Scarlet Knights if that day ever comes to pass.)
Vanberbilt Coach James Franklin Only Hires Assistants With Attractive Wives - James Franklin = Gets it.
Being a former NFL coordinator doesn't hurt either.
Wisconsin quarterbacks Jon Budmayr and Bart Houston will miss 2012 season - Bet Bielema is glad he got such a good deal on the free agent market this summer. Don't worry Badger fans, both quarterbacks are expected to be healthy for 2013 to sit the bench behind ACC quarterback du jour.
Kyle Bosch In The Age Of Backtracking - Land-Grant Holy Land
Given that we live in a world where our politicians, you know the grown individuals of means we supposedly hold to a higher standard to make our laws and represent our best interests, backtrack on a technological platform they're scarcely qualified to operate like it's their job, it's still worth pointing out that contrary to their often public behavior, they're still adults. These student athletes to be aren't.
You know, it would be a lot easier to muster hate for these Buckeye writers if they were a bunch of mouth breathing cretins and not well reasoned, insightful guys. Wait, that makes me hate them even more for not living down to my expectations. The hate lives on.
But yeah, spot on assessment Luke.